Scientific Family
Brassicaceae
Synonyms
Turritis glabra, Arabis glabra var. furcatipilis, Arabis glabra var. glabra, Arabis perfoliata
Other common names
tower mustard
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Biennial
Similar species
Arabis hirsuta
Height
1 to 3 feet
Riparian
Yes
This is a tall, slim, gray-green plant with small creamy flowers at the top of each stem. Arabis glabra is a larval host and/or nectar source for the Large Marble butterfly (Euchloe ausonides).
Fruits are a silique (cylindrical pod); they are erect, numerous, smooth and cylindrical in shape. Petals are yellowish-white, rarely purplish. The hairs on the leaves are forked.
Habitat
Habitats include various kinds of prairies, all soil types including limestone, rocky open woodlands, barren savannas, rocky bluffs, roadsides, abandoned fields, forest margins, stream banks and mountain slopes.
Plant Community
Riparian
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Montane Conifer Forest
Interior Chaparral
Grasslands
Disturbed Areas
Desert Scrub
Low elevation
0
High elevation
9000
Flower Characteristics
The flower at the apex of each raceme is up to 1/6 inch across, consisting of 4 white or cream petals, 4 light green or yellow sepals, a stout style, and several stamens. One or more flowering stalks up to 3 feet tall appear in the second year.
Flower color
White to cream, rarely purplish
Flower shape
Regular
Tubular
No
First bloom month
March
Last bloom month
May
Flower clusters
Elongated
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Basal rosette leaves are 3-1/2 inches long and 3/4 inch across, oblong and often slightly pinnatifid; upper surface is often hairy. The stem leaves are narrower with bases that extend beyond their stem attachment, looking like a stretched arrowhead.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Green to gray-green
Leaf shape
Round or oval
Leaf margin
Toothed
Leaves clasp
Yes
Leaf hairs
Leaves
Spines
No
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Each flower is replaced by a slender cylindrical pod up to 2-1/2 inches long. The pods are held upright close to the stalk of the raceme. Each pod contains 1 or 2 rows of slightly flattened ovoid seeds.
Fruit type
Pod
Fruit color
Green to brownish-green
Small seeds have narrowly winged margins and are dispersed by the wind.